Lin Gao Qiming

Chapter 2279 The Garden Encounter
Yi Haoran had something on his mind, so he refused to drink more, so he poured out a cup, took a few mouthfuls, then declined, saying "I'm full", and said that he was going to "digest food", and walked quietly into the garden.

Wen Yun's inadvertent question just now made him more vigilant.Although it is quiet here, there are quite a few people in the courtyard after all, not to mention that he and Cai Lan were talking about the decapitation, even chatting with each other is very inappropriate in terms of their respective identities.

So before he went to the garden, he observed the yard for a long time, making sure that no one was paying attention to him, and then quietly went to the garden.

The garden is very small, only about one mu of land. There is a pool in the middle, scripture buildings in the middle, and the pond is full of lotus flowers.Linchi is a very small water pavilion.Yi Haoran was afraid that he would be seen sitting in the water pavilion, so he sat down under the big tree in the corner.

The shade under the trees blocked out the sun, and the spots of light at noon fell on the ground, which was really dazzling.He squinted his eyes and looked at the lotus in the pond. He heard the continuous chirping of cicadas, and his mood suddenly became empty.

The banquet provided to Cai Lan in the temple is naturally richer, but neither Cai Lan nor Qiuchan has the heart to eat and drink.After eating hastily, the little Taoist brought tea. It is said that the abbot collected the famous tea from Qixingyan, which is very precious.Cai Lan took a few sips indiscriminately, but couldn't taste any difference.

She was a little sleepy after the meal, and originally wanted to take a nap, but Qiuchan said that it is not appropriate to fall asleep immediately after the meal, it is better to go for a walk, digest food and then go to bed.

"It's so hot today, I can't be bothered to walk anywhere under the sun," Cai Lan said.

"Miss, you don't know. Behind this yard is a garden. Although it is small, it is very exquisite. There are many trees in it, and it is cooler than the house because of the wind."

Cai Lan couldn't hold her back, so she had no choice but to obey her.

The two walked along the flower path. Cai Lan was originally in a daze, but now that she was in the garden, the cool breeze was blowing and the flowers were fragrant, and she felt refreshed.
"The gardens here are even more delicate than those in the Third President's Mansion..." Cai Lan said, "The gardens in the Third President's Mansion are all abandoned..."

"Since the girl likes it, why don't you ask Mr. Xie to renovate it, so that there is a place for sightseeing on weekdays?" Qiuchan wanted her to meet Yi Haoran, so she deliberately led her to talk.

Cai Lan smiled wryly and said, "Whoever I am, I deserve to make such a request! My heart has long since died, and now I'm just a living skin." After finishing speaking, she sighed.

"What did the girl say, I think this old man treats you well, there must be some kindness."

"He's just greedy for flesh and blood." Although Cai Lan is a woman who stays at home, she has a natural perception of men's emotions, "One day, he will abandon my shoes—but that's okay, that's okay. Instead, I was freed..."

"What did the girl say, I don't think that's the case..." Qiuchan knew that she would meet Master Hao not far away, so she said, "My stomach hurts a little, girl, rest in the garden for a while, I will come as soon as I go."

Seeing that there was no one here, Cai Lan presumably would not meet any strangers, and said, "Go and come back quickly."

After Qiuchan left, Cai Lan was bored and walked along the flower path, when suddenly she stopped and let out a small cry in surprise.

A man in his early fifties with gray hair was sitting on a stone bench under the big tree around the corner.Judging by his appearance, he is neither rich nor poor, like a scholar from a well-to-do family.He is closing his eyes and meditating.

Hearing her cry, Yi Haoran opened his eyes - it really was Cai Lan.Although he hadn't seen her several times, he vaguely remembered her appearance.

Immediately got up, bowed and saluted: "Miss Cai, how have you been?"

Cai Lan's first reaction was to withdraw immediately to avoid it, but the other party saluted, and there was absolutely no reason for her to avoid it directly because of her family education - she had to forcefully give her a blessing, and then she wanted to leave.

"Miss Cai, please don't go." Yi Haoran hurriedly said, "Student has something belonging to an old friend here, and I want to ask the girl to read it." After speaking, he unfolded the thing in his hand, and it turned out to be a fan.

Cai Lan didn't want to look at any "old friend's belongings" at all, but when the fan was opened, her flustered eyes froze immediately—this fan was too familiar!

The content of the fan is unremarkable, just rocks, orchids and a clump of bamboo.But she is too familiar with this picture and brushwork - this is a fan painted by her and her fiancé Xing Chenghuan.

She was surprised: "You, who are you?!"

"The student is an old friend of Mr. Xing." Yi Haoran put away his fan and bowed slightly, "Miss Cai, the student has no malicious intentions. I just want to say a few words to the girl."

"I don't want to hear it," Cai Lan panicked, turned around and was about to leave.

Yi Haoran had seen many scenes, immediately sneered and said: "Miss Cai, this is the temple with the most incense in Wuzhou, there are many pilgrims outside, if there is a commotion, this fan will definitely fall into the hands of Australians, when the time comes , but I can't say anything..."

Sure enough, Cai Lan immediately stopped in her tracks, turned around and said tremblingly, "You...what are you going to do..."

"The student said, there are a few words I want to say to the girl." Yi Haoran said, "Don't worry, girl, Mr. Xing and I are old friends, and we will never do anything that harms his family."

This sentence was like a blow to Cai Lan's heart, she couldn't help but tremble, and said in a low voice: "You, who are you? What do you want from me?"

"I said it: it's just an old friend of Mr. Xing." Yi Haoran said leisurely.

Cai Lan didn't want to talk too much with this old man who appeared out of nowhere, but no matter what she did at this moment, it would cause commotion and a great misunderstanding, so she had no choice but to nod: "Sir, please tell me something."

"Miss, please sit here." Seeing her submitting, Yi Haoran's face turned gentle.

Cai Lan had no choice but to sit down on a rock on the opposite side of the stone bench, and said: "I don't know Mr. before, what do you want to say to me?"

Yi Haoran put away the fan and said: "Young lady must know this fan."

"This is my fiancé Xing Chenghuan's fan." Cai Lan asked in surprise, "Where did you come from?"

Fans are used as calligraphy and painting entertainment among literati, and gifts and exchanges are not uncommon.But this fan is different. It was made by Xing Chenghuan and herself: she painted orchids, and Xing Chenghuan painted mountains, rocks and bamboo.Speaking of which, it is a boudoir's possession, and the fiancé will never give this fan to others at will.

"To be honest: the student's surname is Hao, and his name is Ran. He used to work in Xiong Du's tent. He is a good friend of Mr. Xing. When he committed suicide, he gave me this fan as a token, saying that if I can escape with my life, If I have a chance to meet you in the future, I will return this fan to you as a reminder. He said that he refused to marry you at the time, but in fact he already had the idea of ​​dying in the city, and he did not want to delay you... ..."

After finishing speaking, he handed the fan to Cai Lan.

The first half of this statement was completely fabricated, the fan was indeed Xing Chenghuan's, but it was lost at the banquet and picked up by him.In a few days, Wuzhou suffered a series of disasters, and Yi Haoran naturally forgot to return it.During the war, he used it as his fan and tucked it in his sleeve, but he survived.The second half of the sentence is the truth.

Cai Lan received the fan with tears rolling down her cheeks, her hands tightened to fold the fan, suppressing her sobs.When she came to offer incense today, she was already in a much better mood, but when this fan appeared, it disturbed her mood again.

In all fairness, her feelings for Xing Chenghuan are not very deep. Although she has been engaged since childhood, she has never met her a few times.That is to say, during the few months when she fled to Guangdong and came to the fall of Wuzhou, she got along day and night, and she had some feelings.Xing Chenghuan treated her very well, but he didn't want to consummate the marriage with her. She was very disappointed for a time, thinking that he despised her--I never thought that his fiancé would be so considerate of her!
Thinking about his failure in the assassination, he was supposed to be like the strong woman in the book, who was unyielding and scolded the thief for death, but in the end he succumbed to Xie Kun's hypocrisy and gave him his body in a daze... Cai Lan felt ashamed , all five internal organs were burned, wishing that a thunder would fall from the sky immediately and chop him to death!
Seeing that she was about to cry, Yi Haoran was afraid that if she made a noise and would attract idlers, he hurriedly said: "Girl, please keep quiet!"

Cai Lan silently stopped her tears and nodded, and said in a low voice: "Thank you, sir. It's just that the servant girl stooped to serve the thief... her body has long been unclean, and she can't be worthy of Master Xing's kindness to me, and I have failed my master's kindness... ..." As she spoke, she handed the fan back again, "Please take the fan back, sir, as a reminder, the maidservant is not worthy of holding this fan."

"Girl's words are wrong." Yi Haoran had thought for a long time, if he blindly blamed her for being out of integrity, the result would be nothing more than making her feel ashamed and committing suicide--this would be meaningless to him; Will lift myself up.

Only by reassuring her with the way of "forgiveness", and then provoking her with righteousness, can she take the risk of rebellion for the sake of "atonement".

"Miss Cai fell into the mud by mistake for a while, and it is understandable. Since ancient times, the only one who died in hardship is a hero. When the end of the road is unavoidable, short-sightedness and long-suffering are unavoidable. Bandits invade Guangdong and Guangxi. Officials, big and small, have read the books of saints and received the grace of the emperor. When they are in crisis, they can walk and surrender. Even if there is no death battle, they will seldom die. Even a man who has read books and understands things is like this, let alone a girl. A weak woman's ear! Responsibility with integrity and righteousness is a way of losing loyalty and forgiveness."

Since Cai Lan "lost moral integrity", although others have said a lot of comforting words, none of them are as clear as Yi Haoran.Although she knew that he said these words to excuse herself, but the other party's generosity and benevolence made her feel warm in her heart.

"Master, don't want to excuse your slaves. Starving to death is a minor matter, but injustice is a serious matter. The slaves are just ignorant little girls who have already lost their morals. How dare you compare them with the masters?"

"Hehe, this statement is wrong! There are many heroes in Guangdong and Guangxi, but who dares to assassinate Zhen Kun on the steps of the Dragon Mother Temple like a girl?!" Yi Haoran had a righteous face, and he spoke more forcefully .

(End of this chapter)